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Making a Bug House Out of an Empty Jar

This is a really fun easy activity and can be done with young children but it is a bit messy so old clothes are good !!!

I would also love to see your bug houses so remember to take a photo and post in the comments.

ENJOY !!!

Step 1: What You Will Need !

You will need :

- A glass jar with no lid ( any size will do )

- Lots of soil

- Water

- Two plastic bowls

- A large flat stone/pebble

- An indelible marker

- Seeds ( optional ) grass or poppy seeds are good

- Sticks twigs and other things to decorate

Step 2: Laying the Foundations

To make the foundations for the bug house you need to dig a trench that the jar can sit in like shown in the photo. The best place to make you bug house is were leaves or mulch are as the soil underneath is soft and easy to move. To get leaves or other foliage away just brush them over with your hand. Although some weeds like dandelions or doc-ken will need to be dug out.

Step 3: House Interior.

It is very important for the bugs to feel at home in their new house so add a little bit of soil in to the jar and pat it down flat you may also like to add some leaves of twigs to make it even more comfy.

Step 4: Interior Continued

Place the jar back in the trench and add some more soil over the lip of the jar.

Step 5: Cement Mixing

This were it starts to get MESSY !! Pour some soil in to one of the plastic bowls ans sift through it to take out the stones. Place the stones in the other bowl for now. Pour a tiny bit of water in to the soil and mix it around so it is combined.

Step 6: Building the Walls

Take some Soil from your bowl in your hand and put it on the side of the jar and spread it about ( the soil should be wet enough that it sticks ) Do the same to the other side.

Step 7: Building the Roof

At this point you may have run out of water soil mix so follow step 5 to make some more. Put some of the mix on top of the jar and spread it about and do the same on the back. The soil should be spread evenly about and no glass from the jar should show on exterior.

Step 8: The Naming Process

Take the flat stone and write what you want your bug house to be called. The name could be anything from Bugdet motel ( gettit ) to bug house anything you want. You may also want to draw a picture on the stone. For this it is best to use an indelible marker because it will not come off in the rain.

Step 9: Decoration

For this you can decorate it with twigs leaves anything. I used bark of a tree like a wall and you may also want to sow seeds on top of the bug house or even around it so after a while it blends in to the surroundings of the garden.